USRC Relief
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USRC Relief |
| Namesake | Assistance in time of difficulty. |
| Builder | Bierly & Hillman, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania[1] |
| Cost | US$16,450[1] |
| Completed | 1867 |
| Commissioned | 1867 |
| Homeport | Indianola, Texas, 29 June 1867–19 July 1870[Note 1] |
| Fate | Unknown[2] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Relief-class schooner |
| Displacement | 120 tons |
| Length | 92 ft (28 m) |
| Beam | 20 ft (6.1 m) |
| Draft | 7 ft (2.1 m) |
| Sail plan | schooner |
| Armament | 1 gun |
USRC Relief, was a revenue cutter of the United States Revenue Cutter Service in commission from 1867 to at least 1870.[1] She was the first Revenue Cutter Service ship to bear the name.[3]
History
[edit]Built at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, by Bierly & Hillman, Relief was commissioned in 1867 and served what is known of her entire career homeported at Indianola, Texas.[2] She was the lead ship of the Relief-class of two revenue schooners built to her specifications.[Note 2] Relief and her sister ship, Rescue also built by Bierly & Hillman, were among the last strictly sail-powered cutters built for the Revenue Service.[3] On 18 September Relief was transferred temporarily to Key West, Florida due to an outbreak of yellow fever in the Indianola area. She returned from Key West on 5 December 1867. On 19 July 1870, she sailed for New Orleans for scheduled repairs. No Revenue Cutter Service record exists of her movements after 19 July 1870.[2][3]
Notes
[edit]- Footnotes
- ^ The last Revenue Service record of Relief was 19 July 1870[2]
- ^ Colton claims that the Relief-class consisted of only two ships, Relief and USRC Rescue, both constructed at the Bierly & Hillman shipyard. Canney claims Relief was one of six cutters of the Active-class.[1] The other four cutters that Canney claims are in the Active-class were built in different yards and had different dimensions than the cutters built at the Bierly & Hillman shipyard. USRC Active and USRC Resolute were constructed by J.W. Lynn of Philadelphia and had a over all length of 90 ft (27 m); USRC Petrel and USRC Racer were built by W.H. Hawthorn of Williamsburg, New York and had an over all length of 85 ft (26 m).[4]
- Citations
- References used
- "Relief, 1867". U.S. Coast Guard Cutters & Craft Index. U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
- "Record of Movements, Vessels of the United States Coast Guard, 1790–December 31, 1933" (pdf). U.S. Coast Guard, Department of Transportation.
- Canney, Donald L. (1995). U.S. Coast Guard and Revenue Cutters, 1790–1935. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland. ISBN 978-1-55750-101-1.
- Colton, Tim. "Revenue Cutters Built in the 18th and 19th Centuries". Shipbuilding History. shipbuildinghistory.com website. Retrieved 14 May 2014.